


Out Beyond Right, Out Beyond Wrong

by no_loose_wire_jokes



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Fix-It of Sorts, Force Bond (Star Wars), Force Ghost Anakin Skywalker, Force Ghost Obi-Wan Kenobi, Force Ghosts, Happily Ever After, I promise you will feel better after reading this, Post-Canon Fix-It, Post-Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Reylo - Freeform, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Spoilers, They deserved better so I will give them better, This is a therapy fic, This kinda turned into a prologue for my next fic, so it has a happy ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2020-01-19
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:22:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21949519
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/no_loose_wire_jokes/pseuds/no_loose_wire_jokes
Summary: It became abundantly clear that the post-war celebration would last forever in some way or another. But for the inner-circle of Resistance leadership on Ajan Kloss, there was only panic.Their Jedi had gone missing.[Or, After the events of TROS, Rey leaves to figure out how to bring Ben back from the dead and no one has any idea where she's going.]
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Poe Dameron/Finn, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 83
Kudos: 271





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my therapy fic. 
> 
> So I'm just going to post the first little bit of this fic. If y'all like it and want to read more, I'll finish it, but if this flops, we'll pretend it never happened. 
> 
> So, please read through it and when you get to the end, if you liked it, leave a kudos and a comment, and if you didn't, don't and I'll just crawl back into my post-tros depression cave. 
> 
> I truly hope you all enjoy this. Thank you for being here during these trying times.
> 
> Love, Deela

The celebration lasted the whole night. And then the entirety of the next day. And the next. And the next, until it became abundantly clear that the celebration would last forever in some way or another. But for the inner-circle of Resistance leadership on Ajan Kloss, there was only panic. 

  


Their Jedi had gone missing. 

  


“No one knows where she is? Nobody?” General Poe Dameron asks, disbelief and worry lacing his tone.

  


“No one.” General Finn affirms. “She was last seen on the Falcon yesterday. Everyone we’ve asked says they haven’t seen her since.” 

  


“Shit.” Poe rubs his chin and sighs, “You said she took an x-wing right? Can we track it?”

  


“The active tracker’s been deactivated. Wherever she’s going, she obviously doesn’t want to be followed,” says Commander Rose Tico. 

  


“Well, what do we do? We have no idea where she’s going. She could be walking right into danger,” Finn pipes up, his hands gripping the holotable in front of him. 

  


Poe sighs again, “We really don’t have any options. We know she can handle herself so we just have to trust that she’ll retu-” 

  


“General,” Lieutenant Kaydel Ko Connix interrupts, running towards the small group, “Snap and I searched her tent. She left this on her cot. And it’s addressed to you, Sir.” She says to Finn. 

  


The lieutenant sets a small data chip down on the table and Finn instantly snatches it and inserts it into the chip reader in front of him. Short seconds later, a blue glowing hologram of their missing Jedi appears before their eyes. 

  


The sad, sullen, yet somehow determined, look on her face is one that definitely doesn’t fit the atmosphere of the rest of the base. When you look closer at her features, you can see the clearly defined circles under her eyes and even in the blue glow of the hologram you can see their bloodshot colour. She looks as if she hasn’t slept since arriving back on the base and the four people watching lean in closer to hear the quiet words being mumbled by the recording. 

  


_ “Finn. There’s so much I need to tell you. But before I start, I want to apologize for leaving so abruptly. I’m sorry.”  _

  


The Rey in the recording pauses, visibly steeling herself to continue.  _ “After defeating Palpatine, one of the things written in Luke’s Jedi texts became clear. After confirming my theories, I decided to leave in search of it. I realized that time is of the essence and I have none to waste. I’m in search of a place called the World Between Worlds. It’s a plane of the Force that connects time and space and I need to go because there’s something there that I need.  _ Someone  _ I need.” _

  


At this, the Rey in the recording perks up a little, a tiny smile gracing her lips. 

  


_ “Maybe that’s what I should tell you next. I don’t think there’s anything I can say to make you understand but I am in love, Finn. At this point, I’m not sure it’s wise for me to tell you who holds my heart but if I can succeed in my mission then you’ll know soon enough. There’s so much more I need to tell you, to tell all of you, but I’m running out of time. But before I go, I want you to know that I already knew what you were going to tell me, Finn, I just wanted you to come to the realization yourself. I could sense your awareness of the Force growing everyday, so along with this message, I’ve left a series of exercises that you can complete independently to hone your skills while I’m gone.” _

  


She pauses for a second, a strange yet reassuring look gracing her face, before she continues again. 

  


“ _ We’ll see each other again soon, I believe that. Goodbye, my friend, and may the Force be with you. Always.” _

  


When the light flickers and fades out, the group explodes with more questions than answers. 

  


“What in the nine hells is the ‘World Between Worlds’?” Rose asks.

  


“Finn, you are Force sensitive and you didn’t want to tell me?!” Poe asks, outraged. 

  


“Rey is in love.” Kaydel comments dreamily, still gazing where the hologram used to be. 

  


Three heads snap in her direction, all with indignant looks on their faces.

  
“What? She obviously is. Jeeze.” 

  


…

  


**The Night Before…**

  


“No, Chewie. This time I really do need to go alone. I can handle myself.”

  


_ Rrrrrgghhh _

  


“Again, I appreciate the offer, but I’d like to be alone. I think it’ll be better that way.”

  


When the wookie growls again, it’s of quiet understanding. 

  


“Thank you, dear friend.”

  


Packing the last of her journey’s necessary supplies, Rey throws on her helmet and hops into the cockpit of Luke’s old x-wing. 

  


Chewie growls at her again from the ground as she primes the ignition and engages the primary engines. 

  


“I’ll do my best. I still don’t know if it will work but I have to try. I’ll be back as soon as I can, okay? Try not to fix everything on the Falcon while I’m gone?” 

  


With a chuff of laughter from one of her oldest friends, Rey waves, and then quickly takes off unnoticed into the night.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey begins her journey searching for the World Between Worlds and her lost bondmate. Meanwhile, tensions rise between the Resistance leadership.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GUYS, I LOVE ALL OF YOU!!
> 
> The response that I received after posting chapter one was staggering in it's positivity so I've decided to continue it. This is my first multi-chapter fic so I apologize if things seem a little scrambled. I'm trying to make this as cohesive as possible, I promise. 
> 
> Thank you all so much for inspiring me to continue this fic. I really appreciate it!
> 
> I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Love, Deela

The text’s she stole from Luke on Ahch-To are _ancient_ . The information they hold of the Force and traditional meditative and combative techniques are invaluable but _kriff_ , they’re so out of date. And that is why Rey currently finds herself exiting the atmosphere of the city planet, Coruscant, instead of literally _any other planet_ in the galaxy.

The New Republic Historical Archive was one of the only places left in the galaxy with information on the Jedi or their teachings and therefore, her only other source of information about where she may be able to access the World Between Worlds. What little information she could find provided her with more frustration than hope, but as of now, she’s setting the coordinates for a planet named Lothal. 

The World Between Worlds, as she expected, is a difficult place to find. As it stands, most don’t even believe the place exists. They all think it’s some sort of fable, a myth of grandeur and delusion. But she knows better.

The taut golden string that seemingly leads to nowhere in her mind knows better. 

She knows the missing end of that string better than she knows the backs of her own hands and she knows it’s still there. That _he_ is still there. She just has to find out where he’s gone. 

And she’s got a hunch. 

  
  


The only information she could find that was even remotely related to the World Between Worlds at the archive was on a peculiar species named Loth-wolves. This specific species of canines is believed to be extinct, or to most of the Lothalian habitants, completely non-existent, but the notion doesn’t seem right to Rey. According to their file, these wolves supposedly have a strong connection to the Force and were believed by the natives of Lothal to be able to access and travel through the World Between Worlds. Almost as if they were sentient representations of the portal themselves. 

The idea seems almost ridiculous but the whisper of truth she hears humming through the Force is unignorable. Not only that, but she can feel time wasting away, slipping through her fingers like sand through an hourglass. 

Her x-wing doesn’t move nearly as fast as she wants it to. 

…

**Back on Ajan Kloss…**

Day three and Rey still hasn’t returned. Much to the chagrin of the Resistance leadership, whispers of their Jedi’s mysterious disappearance have begun to spread through the ranks.

“ _I heard that she defected. That she left to create a new Empire…”_

_“No, no. She fell in love. She decided she didn’t want to be a Jedi anymore because she didn’t want to be celibate.”_

_“Didn’t she die?”_

It’s only been seventy-seven hours since Rey’s message was found, but already the chase has been deemed stupid and pointless. Every lead they find is squabbled by information they don’t understand, some philosophical Force bullshit that ultimately doesn’t make sense without Rey’s knowledge. 

What they know for sure is that alcohol isn’t the answer, but regardless, Rose, Finn, and Poe all sit in a circle, each with a glass of Corellian whiskey in their hands, worrying sick about their Jedi. 

“We have to say something to the others,” Rose says, her annoyance and frustration slicing through the tipsy silence.

“I don’t know what we _can_ say,” Poe responds, bringing the rim of his glass to his lips as he speaks. 

“Rose is right,” Finn comments, “They all deserve to know where she’s gone.”

Poe’s eyebrow quirks before his shoulders jerk in a feigned attempt at nonchalance. His voice is filled with venom when he says, “Okay then, _Mister Force-sensitive_ , what do we tell them?”

Finn’s eyebrows raise as he sets his drink down on the table before him, sitting up straight in his seat, “Now, hold on a minute-”

Rose rolls her eyes as she takes another, longer, swig of her drink. “Here we go again,” she mumbles.

“No, no, no,” Poe interrupts, “If _you’re_ an all seeing Force user now, then why don’t you have all the answers?”

Finn’s brow creases in anger, his finger shooting out and jabbing Poe square in the chest. “You know, this is _exactly_ why I didn’t want to tell you. I don’t _have_ all the answers, in fact, I have _no_ answers!” There’s a pause as Finn’s frustrations fade into sadness. “I’ve never been so unsure of anything in my life.” 

With that, Finn walks out. Poe drops his head into his hands as he sighs out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. 

“Smooth,” Rose comments over the edge of her glass. 

“Not helping,” he mutters, looking up.

A look of understanding crosses Rose’s face as she gestures out the door, “You better go fix this,” she says. 

He looks up again, sadness gracing his features as he whispers, “I don’t think I know how.”

…

The first thing he notices upon waking up is how dark it is. It’s not a typical darkness, though. It’s dark, but there’s light around the edges, or, at least, where he believes the edges of wherever he is _could_ be. The other strange anomaly is how empty this place is while simultaneously feeling full. The Force thrums through the air he breathes and he closes his eyes for a minute, embracing that feeling, that security, before testing his feet. 

Ben’s surprised to find that he _can_ stand. The pain he remembers before passing out was crippling but now it’s non-existent. 

_Strange_ , he muses to himself before experimentally taking a step forward. 

The ground, ( _Ground? Can he even call it that? He’s literally walking on nothing_ ), is surprisingly sturdy under his feet. With no destination in mind, he just starts walking, his feet taking him… _somewhere._

As he walks, he realizes something; it’s _quiet_. For the first time in his entire life, there isn’t a single noise inside his head. No sounds, no noises, no voices. Just him.

Just him.

And he… doesn’t know what to do with that, this silence. Actually, if he’s being completely honest, the first thought that crosses his head is _I may actually sleep well tonight_ but does he sleep here? Where is here? It’s almost as if he’s in space. A breathable space. An isolated, breathable space. 

And that’s when the panic sets in. Where the _kriff_ is here? How in the hell is he supposed to get out? Is he dead? Did he die? And Rey…

_Rey!_

Where the hell is Rey? Is she alright? Is she safe? 

In desperation, he calls out, “Hello?”

He takes another step, then another, before he finds himself running, sprinting even, calling out over and over again. His panic and frustration multiply as he realizes that he’s getting nowhere. His feet are moving but he is not. And it’s clear that no one else is here, or else they would’ve heard him already in this emptiness and yet he already knew he was alone. 

He stops and falls to his knees, that silence now crippling. His shoulders shake and before he realizes it, there are tears falling down his cheeks. 

For a while, he just cries. He cries for Rey. He cries for his mother and his father. He cries for _himself_. Something he hasn’t done in what feels like eons. He cries for thirty years of pain and regret, and eventually, he feels his tears begin to subside. 

He doesn’t know how long he lays there, rolled up in a ball, hugging himself. It feels like it could be hours but he has no idea how time works here. _If_ time works here. 

Eventually, he sits up. A sudden determination in his boiling in his blood. He can’t just lie here for the rest of time. He needs to do something. He needs to find a way out. A way back to the only thing he has left to live for. 

He crosses his legs and rests his palms on his knees, his eyes closing habitually as he reaches out, out, _out._

The Force opens up, pulses through and around him, and he feels this world expand. This realm, of sorts, becomes brighter as he digs deeper and soon, behind his closed lids, he can see the light. 

He feels a peace he hasn’t ever felt before but it lasts for only a second before he hears a voice he kind of hoped he’d never hear again. 

“Hey, kid.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we know that the temple on Lothal has been destroyed, but Rey doesn't......
> 
> For the sake of this story, I'm going to assume that the Empire/First Order destroyed almost all record of the Jedi and their teachings so that would leave very little information for Rey to discover about the World Between Worlds. What she found on Coruscant was that there was a temple on Lothal and some weird wolves but that's all she knows moving forward. 
> 
> How bout that little FinnPoe spat tho...
> 
> And Ben is... alive? Maybe? 
> 
> Let me know what you think of this chapter!! Thank you so much for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe manages to make amends and Rey is introduced to some unexpected visitors.

The planet of Ajara reflects the system’s star brightly and even though it’s the dead of night on Ajan Kloss, it’s almost as bright as day. That’s why Poe has almost no difficulty locating Finn in the depths of the forest outside the resistance base. 

He finds him sitting on a branch that rests only a few feet above the ground, enough that his feet dangle slightly back and forth as he chucks large pieces of bark into a nearby stream.

“Come to belittle me some more?” Finn asks dryly, not even turning around. He chucks another piece of the smooth bark into the water. 

Poe pulls himself up to sit beside him on the branch. He stares down into the water before softly glancing at his friend, “You know I didn’t.” 

“No, I don’t,” Finn responds sharply before dropping his head and whispering, “I don’t know anything anymore.” 

A silence stretches between them, but Poe, determined not to create a bigger rift between them, throws his arm around Finn’s shoulders. “One of my biggest faults,” he begins softly, “Is that I don’t like to admit when I’m wrong.”

Finn snorts, resting his head against Poe’s shoulder, “No shit.” 

“It’s true!” Poe retorts in a huff of laughter but his tone sombers again as he says, “I think that’s why Leia was always so hesitant to put me on high command. I’m always such a butt-headed gundark about shit I don’t understand and recently you’ve been on the receiving end of that dumbassery.” 

Finn lifts his head to look at Poe as he continues. 

“I admittedly don’t know much about the Force, and I think I realized just  _ how much _ I don’t know when we were talking about Rey on Kef Bir. That shit scares me, Finn, and I think that’s why I became such a defensive prick. Now that she’s off looking for some mystical Force realm and you’re some kind of secret Jedi…” Poe pauses and looks at Finn, “I don’t know what to think anymore.”

There’s another silent pause and Poe sighs before continuing. “I guess I just wanted to say I’m sorry. For everything. My being a dumbass doesn’t excuse me from being a complete dick.”

Finn considers this for a second, his lips churning in thought before he smiles. “Did Poe Dameron just call himself a dumbass and a dick in the same sentence?”

“Ha ha, very funny,” Poe dryly laughs, sarcasm lacing his tone, “But seriously," he sombers again, "I really am sorry.”

Finn rests his hand on top of the one Poe has placed on his shoulder. “Apology accepted.” 

  
  


...

  
  


A crumbled pile of what once was the majesty of a Jedi temple brings her to her knees. There’s no temple here. Not anymore. And what used to be a portal? Yeah, apparently that’s gone too. Destroyed or some shit, and no one bothered to tell her. No one! She asked about three locals about the temple on her way here and all they did was kindly point her in the right direction. Why did no one bother to say  _ anything _ !?

And you know what else? She hasn’t even seen one of those stupid, aforementioned, over-grown, Force dogs! 

She’s beginning to believe that the archives were right. That the kriffing wolves aren’t real and she’s probably chasing some goddamned legend across the galaxy while time ticks down on the chronometer. 

She lets the rest of her body flop to the ground, her head smacking the dry grass as she beats fist-sized craters into the earth above her temples. She pulls her hood tight over her head and screams into the dirt, yelling at the planet itself for destroying something so important, even though it’s certainly not Lothal’s fault. Her fists white-knuckle the fabric of her hood before she lets her arms flop and fall loose at her sides, a frustrated groan crawling from her throat as tears prickle her eyes. 

“Are you done?” 

Rey jumps, her heart in her throat for a second before she sits upright, her spine ramrod straight. Her head whips from side to side and then behind her and that’s when she spots him. A Force ghost.

He dons Jedi robes almost identical to the ones Luke wore on Ahch-To but instead of white and beige, they are brown and black. His hair frames his head in perfect sandy-blonde waves and there’s a thin scar running over his right eye. His ice blue eyes are strong and resolute and for a moment, they staggeringly remind her of Ben. 

“Who are you?” She demands, still sitting on the ground. 

“You don’t know who I am?” He asks, head tilting to the side. 

Rey raises one brow incredulously as anger sparks under her skin. “I know  _ what _ you are,” she starts, “a presumptuous ass, that’s what.” 

She hears laughter even though the man in front of her isn’t laughing whatsoever. Then out of nowhere, a second ghost appears. He looks slightly older than the one with the scar, a ginger beard and thick ginger hair are his most defining features. He brings a hand to his face and strokes his beard as he chuckles more. 

“She’s got you there, apprentice,” the older one laughs. 

Her frustration bubbles over her astonishment and annoyance crosses over her features. “Would somebody tell me what the hell is going on? Who the in the nine hells are you?”

“My apologies, young one. I am Obi-Wan Kenobi,” the older one,  _ Obi-Wan _ , states with a bow, “and this is my friend, Anakin Skywalker.”

Rey feels her jaw drop. “You’re Anakin Skywalker? Darth Vader?”

Anakin shifts uncomfortably, “Was. I was Darth Vader. Not anymore.” Rey opens her mouth to intervene but he continues quickly, cutting her off. “But that’s not important here. What  _ is  _ important is your mission.” 

“Well,” Rey starts, motioning to the ruins behind her, “If you hadn’t noticed, my mission has failed. I’ve hit a dead end.” 

“Have you?” Obi-Wan asks, his question sounding strangely more like an answer than a query. 

Not understanding, Rey motions even more aggressively towards the ruins, silently saying ‘ _ Are you blind?’  _

“Rey, why do you think we’re here?” Anakin asks.

“I don’t know,” Rey huffs, “To laugh at me?”

“And you call me dramatic,” Anakin mutters to Obi-Wan.

Rey growls and gets up angrily. She picks her staff up off the ground and starts walking away. 

“Rey, wait,” Obi-Wan calls after her. 

She continues walking. “I don’t have time for this,” she calls back. 

“We can help you get him back.” Anakin yells. 

Now  _ that  _ makes her stop. She whips back around and stares them both in the eyes. “How?” she asks sternly. 

“We can help you pull him out of the World Between Worlds.” Anakin states proudly, crossing his arms over his chest in a not-so-subtly triumphant way. 

“Well, like I mentioned earlier, I can’t even  _ get  _ to the World Between Worlds, let alone find it.” She says, a hope that maybe they truly could help her filling her chest. 

“But you’ve already seen it. From a certain point of view,” Obi-Wan says, his hand still resting on his beard.

“What? No, I haven’t,” she states confidently, before she faulters a little bit and asks, “ _ Have I?” _

“Search your feelings, Rey.”

Rey sits back down. She crosses her legs and rests her palms on her knees. She takes several deep breaths before letting herself surrender to the light that is the Force. It’s warmth and power envelops her quickly, it’s waves washing over her senses and soon she sees herself. The vision is cloudy and dark but she recognizes it instantly. Herself, repeated hundreds of times. Not trapped, not afraid. Just leading…  _ somewhere _ . 

And that’s when it dawns on her. Her eyes snap open and she quickly stands again, gasping as she does. 

“Ahch-To?” She asks. 

Both the ghosts nod. 

“I-... How can I ever thank you?” She asks sincerely. 

“Bring him back.” Anakin says.

And with that, both of them disappear. Rey lingers for only a second before taking off, sprinting as fast as she can back to her x-wing. 

She knows now what she needs to do. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Any kudos, comments, or constructive criticisms would be much appreciated!
> 
> So, I go back to school tomorrow and with many summative assignments around the corner, it may be a while before I can update again. I'll try my hardest to continue working on it, but the updates may come in a little more sparingly than I'd like them to. 
> 
> Thank you guys so much for your support thus far and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
> 
> Love Deela!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey saves Ben.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the chapter that we're all here for soooo... enjoy!

_“Hey, kid.”_

Ben has to blink multiple times before he actually believes what’s in front of him. A blue, glowing, reincarnation of his uncle stands above him, terrifyingly reminiscent of that one fateful night. Ben jumps to his feet in an instant. “What is this?” He barks, taking a defensive step backwards. 

Like sighs and raises his hands in a placating motion. “It’s not a trick, Ben,” he says, “I can’t hurt you.”

“That sounds suspiciously placating for someone like you,” Ben spits. 

“I don’t want to hurt you,” Luke sighs, “I never did.”

“Oh, I’m sure,” Ben snaps back, “Because all uncles stand over their nephews with ignited lightsabers while they sleep.”

“You know that I made a mistake. I never could have harmed you. I love you too much for that.” 

“Oh, now you whip out the _loving family member_ card. Where was that when I told you about my nightmares? Or my visions? You were never there for me! _Never!_ ” He turns away and throws his hands in his hair, tugging at the strands. “And now I’m dead. _Dead._ And I don’t know if Rey is safe! And the rest of the First Order; is it still around? Is it stronger now that I’m gone? I don’t know _what the FUCK_ is going on!” His arms curl and his spine tenses as he yells into the endless depths of the realm, “FUCK!” 

He takes a breath, and another, and his anger ebbs in the back of his head.

“Are you done?” Luke asks, his arms tucked into his sleeves. 

Ben turns on him and points a finger at his face, “Oh, that’s _real_ rich coming from-“ 

“No, seriously. Do you want to get out of here or not?” 

That gives Ben pause. His temper immediately fizzles into almost nothing and his face goes blank. “You can get me out of here?” 

“No, but you can get yourself out. I can only give you a little push,” Luke says, smirking.

Ben takes a breath, absorbing. “How?” He asks. 

“Think about it,” Luke says, “You vanished on Exogol. The only reason Palpatine was there to begin with was because he was siphoning energy from the vergences beneath the planet’s surface.” 

Ben’s eyebrows crease together in confusion. “You mean to tell me I’m stuck in a Force vergence? Like the World Between Worlds?” 

“Not quite,” Luke responds, “Yes, you’re in a vergence but no, you’re not quite in the World Between Worlds. You’re close, but you’re not that close.” 

Ben brings his hands to his gut, placing his hands flat upon his stomach. “So, I’m…” 

“Not dead, no.” 

“So that means that if I can find the entrance to the vergence…” 

“That you can go home, yes.” 

Ben feels almost as if he’s suffering from emotional whiplash with how quickly he feels joy and relief wash through his system. If his uncle weren’t here, he probably would’ve jumped in joy.

He pauses to look back at the old ghost. He stares at his uncle as he asks, “Why are you helping me?” 

Luke’s blue eyes turn downcast and he sighs deeply before he says, “Ben, I wronged you too many times while I was alive. I can at least try to make it up to you in death.” 

That stuns Ben. He spent a near lifetime hating the man before him and now-now he doesn’t know what he feels. 

“I-... Thank you.”

Luke smiles softly, a regretful reverence gleaming in his deep blue eyes. “Go get her, Ben.” 

And just before vanishing, Luke looks him straight in the eye, “And give her your last name, would you? It was a nice tribute and all but I think Rey Solo would sound much better than Rey Skywalker. Don’t you think?”

And with that his uncle disappears. Ben’s face twists with confusion, and not to mention, a little disgust. 

“ _Rey Skywa-..._ Ew.”

…

Her arrival on Ahch-To had been messy and slightly chaotic. She had barely waited for the x-wing to touch down before jumping right out of the cockpit. 

Her feet landing on the rough stone had been less than graceful, and she stumbled as she started sprinting around to the far side of the island. She almost stepped on more than a few porgs and she legitimately bowled into a poor, unfortunate Lanai who was carrying a pile of stones. She hardly stopped to apologize as she hopped back up and continued her course to the cave. 

When she reached the mouth of the cave, there was only a moments hesitation as she swore, “Fucking _swimming,”_ before she dove in head first. 

And now she stands- cold, dripping wet, and panting- as she looks into the tall dark mirror ahead of her. 

Rey takes a deep breath and approaches the mirror slowly, clenching her fists before reaching out cautiously. She closes her eyes and steels herself through the Force. When she re-opens them, they shine with a new determination that she can feel coursing through her blood. 

She softly presses her fingers to the cool glass, and gently, _desperate_ whispers, “ _Ben_.”

…

He hears his name echo, repeating over and over again like a Doppler effect through the Force. 

“Rey?” He calls out. 

He stops to listen and he focuses, trying to locate the source of her voice through his mind’s eye. 

Her response comes almost instantly, just another soft utterance of “ _Ben_ ” that echos a hundred times over. He can hear hope in her voice and he’s beginning to feel the same thing deep in his heart. 

He whips his head in the original direction of the sound and faintly in the distance, he can see her silhouette. 

He can feel the Force building around him, and he feels the beginning of a smile forming on his lips as he runs towards her figure. 

Before when he ran, he went nowhere. Circling around destinationless. But now she’s here and he can see where he needs to go, where he needs to be. 

He knows what he needs to do. 

As he approaches her silhouette, a translucent, almost invisible glass wall appears before him. 

He can barely make out her features through the density of it. Her hair is in the half-up style it was way back when they were on the _Supremacy_ and her eyes, though foggy through the glass, shone through with hope and happiness. 

What he could see clearly, though, was the tips of her fingers, now pressed gently against the glass. 

Without hesitation, he brings his hand up, perfectly mirroring hers, and presses his fingertips to the glass. 

The Force _sings_ around him, almost as if it was relieved to have them reunited and he could feel their bond, feel _her_ , regenerate out of nowhere in the back of his mind. That golden string that connects them through time and space instantly snapping back into place and a peace that he’s never felt before courses through him. That empty space that she had left unoccupied when he disappeared is once again full of her and he’s never been more relieved. 

The Force continues to build, it’s power and brightness filling him from the inside out and suddenly, it becomes difficult to see, almost as if someone has thrown a white sheet over his head. But he doesn’t feel trapped or panicked, because he knows where he’s going, he knows what’s happening. The ghostly impression of a hand on his shoulder only reaffirms that. And suddenly, yet expectedly, he goes numb.

He feels his eyes begin to shut and all of a sudden everything just goes…

_White._

... 

When she blacked out, or _whited_ out, supposedly, she wasn’t anticipating to wake up on a cot, with a blanket over her shoulders. 

But that questioning curiosity was quickly replaced with outright panic as she shoots up out of bed, startling the three Lanai that had their backs turned to her only a second ago. Her eyes move to each of them before migrating to the hulking figure lying on the cot behind them. 

Her eyes widen and she darts across the room, sliding to her knees as she presses her hands against the cool cheeks of Ben Solo’s face. She watched him disappear before her very eyes but that golden string in her mind never snapped. It tightened, as if it was under immense pressure, but never did the ends of that tether break and now she stares at the proof as it sleeps gently in her hold. 

“Ben!” She exclaims as she holds his face in her hands, her thumbs slowly sliding back and forth over his cheekbones. 

He stirs slightly, his brow shifting and lips twisting before mumbling something about _five more minutes_. 

A watery chuckle escapes her throat and she shakes his face a little in attempts to rouse him, “Wake up, Ben.” 

It’s two seconds before his eyes groggily blink open and only a second more before a massive smile breaks across his features. “Rey,” he says reverently, bringing his hand up to her cheek as well. 

Her heart bursts with happiness and she surges down to kiss him. She caught him off guard, if the surprised groan into her mouth is any indicator, but he happily- and enthusiastically- returns the kiss with equal fervor, only breaking away to gasp for air before diving back in. 

When their lips finally let go of one another, their foreheads bump together, almost as if their bodies are appalled by the idea of being apart and they chuckle as Ben pulls her onto his lap, shifting into a seated position against the stone wall of the hut. Rey lets her head fall to rest on the junction of his shoulder and neck and takes a deep breath, absorbing the scent of him while he drops his chin on the top of her head, probably doing the same thing to her hair. His arms are strong, almost crushing around her as he pulls her to his chest but she doesn’t complain. And she finally, _finally_ , feels at peace. 

“You came back,” she whispers into the collar of his sweater- the same one with the hole in it. 

“I’ll always come back for you, sweetheart,” he responds immediately.

The little chuckle that escapes her sounds almost as much like a sob as a laugh and Ben cranes his neck to try and look at her face. 

She sits up a little to look into his eyes but instead brings her hand down _hard_ against his pectoral in a show of anger, “You karking nerfherder, don’t you ever do that again!” She points at his face, “Next time, I’ll leave you there to rot I swear to the-” 

He cuts her off with a kiss, one filled with gratitude and an apology that would probably never fit into words and when he breaks away he looks dead into her eyes and says, “I’m never going anywhere. You’re stuck with me.” 

Rey reaches up and tangles her fingers into the hair at the base of his skull. “Good,” she says, and with another sly smile, she pulls him in for another long, passionate kiss. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Any kudos, comments, or constructive criticisms would be much appreciated!
> 
> I plan on writing an epilogue so stay tuned for that, but what's exciting about this epilogue is that it is going to set up another sequel fic! I plan on writing a whole other story that takes place after this one, so stay tuned for news on that! (I plan on hopefully updating about that on Twitter so if you actually are interested in staying up to date with that then follow me @ bendemptionist ) 
> 
> Anyways, thank you guys so much for your support thus far and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
> 
> Love Deela!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter of this little fic so enjoy!

“You can do it. Just focus.”

“I _am_ focusing.”

“Well, focus harder, ‘cause obviously whatever you’re doing now isn’t working.” 

“Thanks, _captain obvious_ , I hadn’t thought of that.” 

“Alright, you asked me to help so I’m helping. I can’t read this kriffing book so I don’t know what else-“ 

“Finn! Rose!” Poe’s voice rings through the trees and it’s only a second more before he bursts through the bush. 

Rose sighs. “Poe, there’s literally a path two feet to the left of that bush-“ 

“Rey’s back!” 

Rose and Finn take only a second to stare at each other before jumping from their spot on the ground and sprinting back behind Poe to the tarmac. 

The engines of her x-wing are just finishing their power down sequence but Rey is already hopping out of the ship and running towards them, her arms wide open. 

“Finn! Rose!” 

All four collide into a group hug. Three people sigh in relief and one clears their throat. 

“And Poe,” Rey chuckles. 

And _then_ there’s one more sigh of relief. 

When they break apart, Finn leaves his hand on her shoulder. “Are you alright?” 

Rey smiles, but this smile is different than any other one he’s ever seen upon her face. It’s genuine. Actual, tangible happiness graces her features. Not to say he’s never seen her happy before- ‘cause he has, but this is just the first time where he’s seen her smile actually reach her eyes. 

“I’ve never been better in my life.”

“Well? Spill it,” Rose starts, a motherly concern lacing her voice, “Where’d you go? Who’s the mystery lover?” 

At this, Rey’s face does a weird series of things. First, she blinks slowly, her eyes glazing over and a far-off look in her eyes. Then, her shoulder’s shake a little as if she’s laughing at her own inside joke. And then, her eyes widen suddenly and her smile turns half into a grimace. Her gaze flicks frantically between all three of them and Finn can’t help but narrow his eyes in confusion and suspicion. 

Then, Rey does another thing he’s never seen her do. She _blushes_. 

“Ah, about that,” she starts nervously, bringing her hand up to scratch at her neck, _and is that a bruise under her collar?_ “I- uh… he’s here, actually,” and her head twitches as if she’s trying to prevent herself from looking back at the x-wing. 

Immediately, he, Rose, and Poe all whip their heads to her ship. When the hatch suddenly pops open, all three of them draw their blasters. 

“No, no, no,” Rey yells, immediately jumping in front of them, her hands and her body placed defensively between them and the x-wing, “Please don’t freak out!” 

“Who is it, Rey?” Poe asks sternly. 

“Put down your blasters and I’ll tell you,” she says, stepping closer to the x-wing, perfectly placing herself in the middle of the conflict.

There’s another moment's hesitation, before Rose lowers her weapon, Finn begrudgingly following her lead. 

“Come on, Poe,” Rey pleads. 

He jerks and then quickly holsters his gun, “Okay, alright. Fine, fine, _fine._ Who is it?” 

“It’s Ben Solo.” 

Suddenly, all three blasters are back. 

“Aw, hell no-“

“ _Kylo-kriffing-Ren_?-“ 

“I’m gonna kill him-“ 

“No!” Rey yells again, “No ones killing anyone! And neither is he!”

“You can’t promise that, Rey,” Poe says, his eyes fixed on her. 

“Yes, I can,” she argues, “I’ll kick his ass if he tries anything stupid.” 

“It’s true.” A deep voice suddenly interrupts.

All four startle, “Ah!” 

Rey rounds on the tall, dark, hulking figure that is Kylo Ren, dressed head to toe in black while wearing a sweater that has hole where a breast pocket would be. “Gods, Ben, you can’t do that.”

His head sinks sheepishly into his shoulders and he mumbles, “Sorry,”

Finn can feel his face twist up in confusion and in his peripheral, he can see Rose and Poe exchange a stern, perplexed glance. 

Kylo Ren reaches for Rey’s hand and Finn feels his hands tighten around the butt-end of his blaster. 

“I could feel your anxiety,” he says, now holding her hand gently between both of his, his thumbs brushing over her knuckles. 

“It’s okay,” Rey responds softly, placing her second hand on his, caressing him _back_ , and now Finn is just uncomfortable. “We’re okay.” 

“Alright,” Poe interrupts, waving his blaster in the air, gesturing between the two of them, “Somebody better explain what the hell is happening here or I swear to god-”

“He saved my life,” Rey snaps, “If it weren't for him, I’d be dead.” 

That effectively shuts Poe up, his mouth opening and closing like some kind of fish. As of now, Finn sucks at using the Force, but something about that statement rings true somewhere between his ears. He doesn’t trust Kylo Ren in the slightest, but he trusts Rey, and he’s learning to trust the Force, too. He lowers his blaster, tucking it back into it’s holster. 

“Finn, what are you _doing_?” Rose hisses beside him. 

Finn looks at Rey and then glares straight at Kylo, “If what Rey’s saying is true, than I trust him.”

“ _Trust_ him?” Poe asks incredulously.

“Yeah,” Finn responses airily, shrugging with a confidence everyone else knows isn’t there, “Totally.”

Poe flicks his eyes to Rey before leveling the blaster at Kylo again. “Saved you how?” He asks.

“I was dead. He sacrificed his life Force to save me and _he_ died for it. That’s why I had to leave. I had to go get him back.” 

“From the World Between Worlds?” Poe asks. 

“Exactly,” Rey says, shifting closer to Kylo then, her shoulder against the side of his arm, their hands still twined together. “We’re connected,” she begins, “In a way that no one would understand. I couldn’t live without him, not even if I tried.”

That’s when they notice the tears in her eyes. Rose’s blaster falls to her side, but Poe’s dutifully remains in place, only wavering slightly when she sniffles. 

And that’s when Finn sees another strange series of things. Kylo Ren’s face crinkling in sadness as he ducks his head to her height. Then, one of his hands reaches up and brushes gently across her cheekbone, catching a fallen tear. And then, Rey curls into him, pressing her cheek against his chest. 

The blatant display of affection is staggering, really, and the group looks on skeptically. 

Ren brings his arms around her and places his chin upon the top of her head, effectively locking her in place against him. When he opens his eyes, he looks gently at all three people in front of him. When he notices Poe’s blaster, he turns slightly, almost unnoticeably, putting himself between Rey and the muzzle. 

This, it seems, is a gesture that finally earns a bit of Poe’s trust. 

Ren closes his eyes again and a few terse seconds go by before Ren leans into Rey’s ear and mumbles “ _okay?_ ” before slowly peeling her off him. Her grip on his sweater provides him with a little resistance but she gives when he gently urges, “ _Rey._ ” 

Rey’s arms wrap around herself as he steps away from her and towards the Resistance leadership. As he approaches, he holds out his wrists in offering and stands only a few feet away from Poe. 

The General stares at his wrists, his mind obviously turning and- still holding eye contact with Ren- he says, “Rose, cuff him, please.” 

And she does. Ren’s face remains the same picture of stoicism as she unhooks them from her belt, opens them, steps towards him, and locks them around his wrists, but when she winds up and kicks his shin, the stoicism is instantly gone, replaced with pain and a hint of shock. He inhales sharply and shakes out his leg.

Finn gapes at Rey when he sees her do the same thing. 

Rose steps back, her shoulders set strong and confidently, as a smug grin takes over her face. 

Poe, barely holding in a laugh, squares his eyes on Ren’s and throws his hands behind his back in a very military-esque manner. “Supreme Leader Kylo Ren,” he begins.

Rey quickly waves her hand towards Poe and says, “ _Ben Solo.”_

“Ben Solo,” Poe repeats mindlessly before shaking his head in confusion and leaning around Ren to point at Rey, “Hey!” 

Finn snorts behind his hand as Rey feigns innocence. Even Ren is smirking. 

Poe sighs, before starting over. “ _Ben Solo_ ,” he exaggerates while looking over at Rey, and when she nods, he continues, “As General of the New Republic I am placing you under arrest to maintain the safety of this base and it’s members. Anything you say will be used against you in the courts of the New Republic. Do you understand?” 

Ben’s response of “Yes,” is the last word spoken before the group makes their way inside the base.

…

Ben Solo’s stint in solitary confinement lasted maybe all of six days. It’s difficult to hold a prisoner when instead of holding just one, you accidentally hold two. 

Rey spent every waking moment of everyday sitting right outside the bars of the hastily thrown together cell- a little too late after cuffing him, Poe realized that they actually didn’t even have a spot to hold him, but an old storage locker with a new door did just fine- and she refused to leave.

Every time that he, Finn or Rose would ask her to eat she’d say, “ _Not until Ben eats”_. Every time that one of them would ask her to sleep she’d say, “ _Not until Ben gets a cot in his cell”._ Every time they weakly threatened to stun her and drag her to her own bunk, she’d brush her fingers over the hilt of her lightsaber and say, “ _Try it. I dare you”._

So eventually, instead of moving her, they decided that it would just be smarter to move him. Poe granted him parole under Rey’s constant supervision, which neither of them-somehow unsurprisingly-objected to. 

But now Poe sits in the Resistance’s old training facility on Ajan Kloss, awaiting orders from the Council of the New Republic. For the most part, the New Republic recovered extremely quickly. All the downtrodden and oppressed systems around the galaxy hopped on the opportunity to reassemble the Galactic Senate, or at least for now, a smaller version of it, and hopefully let a productive and reparative diplomacy resume. 

There is still so much to be fixed from the eras of the Empire and the First Order but right now, they seem like such big, far-away problems. And as he sits on a soft, old mat right beside Finn, nursing a smooth bottle of foreign suds, he is subjected to watching a strange, yet admittedly entertaining sparring match. 

He and Finn are about thirty feet from the action yet he somehow feels as if he could be in _some sort_ of danger. 

“Yield,” Rey hisses, her wooden training staff locked up against her partner’s as they both catch a breath.

“Never,” Ben says back and then grunts as he pushes her blade off his and jumps back into a defensive position. 

Rey stumbles but quickly regains her footing, a cool and calm confidence line her steps as she slowly moves towards him, like a predator preparing to attack its prey. She smiles as she says, “So, you want to do this the difficult way, then?”

Ben shrugs, “You know me.”

“As you wish,” and with a flourish of her stick she charges, jumping up into the air and bringing her weapon down over her head in an aggressive slash.

Ben easily blocks and retaliates, suddenly on the offensive. The quick change of pace catches Rey off guard and she stumbles backward, landing flat on her back and dropping her stick, giving Ben the opportunity to pounce and pin her to the ground by her wrists, her legs trapped between his. 

“ _You_ yield,” Ben says, his breathing heavy and scattered. 

Finn leans over to Poe, and with a slightly alarmed look on his face, he asks, “Should we be concerned?” 

It’s only a second after that when Rey makes a move so fast that Poe wouldn’t have believed it actually happened had he not seen it with his own eyes. Suddenly, Ben is on his back, their positions from before flipped with Rey now straddling his hips and his wrists pinned above his head by her hands. 

With one final, victorious thump of her foot against the mat, Rey leans down so that their faces are only a few inches apart before whispering, “ _Never._ ” 

Poe leans back over to Finn. “Nah,” he says, “I think she can handle herself.”

Suddenly, the door of the training facility opens and Kaydel runs in. Rey and Ben, swiftly remembering that they aren’t alone, quickly untangle themselves like toddlers caught with their hands in the cookie jar and Poe can’t help but snort.

He turns his attention to Kaydel, who is basically tripping herself as she speedwalks past the bumping pile of Force users and bee-lines straight for him and Finn. 

“Generals,” she starts before she even reaches them, “We’re intercepting a First Order distress signal in the command center.”

“First Order?” Poe asks. At this the grown-up-sized, Force-using toddlers perk up, their unease obvious even to people like him who can’t feel it through the Force. 

“Yeah,” Connix responds, handing him a datapad almost reluctantly, “And you’re not gonna like who it’s from.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that brings us to the end of this fic, but not their story...
> 
> This story, which I originally intended to be a simple post-TROS fix-it fic, accidentally gave birth to a million new story ideas that I plan to follow through with and write. The next fic in this series will be called "There Is A Place, I'll Meet You There" and it will pick up a few years after this one. 
> 
> I'm anticipating to have the first few chapters of this one written and posted hopefully sometime within the next month or so. If you are interested in following along, you can follow me on Twitter (@ bendemptionist) or subscribe to my ao3 handle. 
> 
> If you've made it this far, I just want to say thank you, thank you, thank you so much for reading! It truly is such a motivational and uplifting feeling to have so much support through comments and kudos and I don't know how I could ever repay you all for the confidence that writing this fic provided me with. So from the deepest depths of my heart, thank you so much!
> 
> Again, I hope you enjoyed this fic and remember, the Force will be with you, always.

**Author's Note:**

> Did you like it? Do you want more? Was it terrible and should I run back to my cave and live there forever? 
> 
> Tell me in the comments please and thank you! 
> 
> Love you guys!


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